#234: The Lobby Social Club

The Bar

The Lobby Social Club. 710 B W 6th Street, Austin, TX 78701

Visited 6/19/2026 @ 10pm.

The Drink

La Paloma. Tequila, triple sec, agave, grapefruit, Tajín. $15.

Drinks in a dance club tend to be either basic yet functional, because you need just something to drink, or flashy and expensive, because you're trying to impress someone. This paloma was in the former category, although it was better than functional. This was the fifth paloma I've been served and I think it was among the best even though I don't know what well tequila they used. Part of that might have been presentation, as it came in a nice-looking glass rather than the plastic cup you sometimes get at clubs, but the other part was that the bartender was preparing it with skill even as I was annoying her with my spiel and questions about the bar. Dance clubs can be dehumanizing places to grab a drink, but not here, even though I had to drink it standing right up against the bar like a weirdo because while I was chatting with the bartender, immediately after I took my first sip about a million people descended upon the dance floor behind me and there was nowhere else to go. It all worked out though.

The Crew

Aaron.

Notes

My third stop of the night. When I was being waved in up the stairs by the doorman, my Simpsons-addled brain had the overwhelming urge to tell him "I have to go to ze lobby", but thankfully I was able to suppress it. Ze Lobby opened about a month ago, replacing The Ranch, which closed at some point within the last year. I have to say that in my opinion The Lobby looks way cooler than The Ranch was, no shade on the former occupant. The homey roadhouse interior has been replaced wholesale with a glittery infrared laser disco setting that impressed even a non-dance club-going schlub like me, and even though I still had more stops planned I was tempted to stay and just soak up the vibe/music. I was also impressed with the crowd; having just come from the essentially empty Medusa a block away, the throng of patrons made for quite a contrast. But the thing that I was perhaps most impressed with was the music, which was quite good EDM (props to the DJ), but even more importantly was at an actually reasonable volume that was just fine to listen to without being blasted into submission. In this modern era of ubiquitous painfully loud music, any venue that respects its patrons by not giving them permanent hearing damage deserves praise.